Israel says it cleared Hezbollah tunnels under key Lebanon ridge months after ceasefire

Perspective Analysis

Israel announced it had taken operational control of the Ali al-Taher ridge in southern Lebanon and cleared Hezbollah fighters from an underground network of tunnels beneath it. The ridge rises roughly 600 metres above sea level and sits about 15 kilometres from the border. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stated on Friday that the mission was completed, with some fighters eliminated and others forced to flee. The military described the complex as containing command centres, weapons stores, generators, living quarters, showers and kitchens, built with Iranian support.

The announcement came amid continued Israeli airstrikes and ground activity in the area. Haaretz reported that the latest wave of strikes responded to an attempted Hezbollah drone attack on Israeli soldiers inside the buffer zone. At least two people were reported killed in earlier strikes that same day. A Lebanese military officer told Reuters that Israeli troops had seized the southern entrances to the tunnel system and could monitor the northern ones with drones, though the full extent of penetration remained unclear and some sections might still be booby-trapped.

Hezbollah offered no formal comment on the Israeli claims. Earlier, a senior Hezbollah official, Mahmoud Qamati, had acknowledged the ridge’s importance but argued that even its loss would not end the group’s operations. The June ceasefire agreement called for Hezbollah to disarm and for Israeli forces to withdraw from occupied Lebanese territory, yet both sides have continued limited operations. Israel has expanded its presence in southern Lebanon since a March escalation, while Hezbollah has used drones against Israeli positions.

The ridge overlooks villages and key roads leading to Nabatiye and had been under Israeli occupation for 18 years until the 2000 withdrawal. Its tunnels and storage areas give whoever holds it influence over supply routes and observation of surrounding terrain. Analysts quoted by Al Jazeera noted that Israeli success so far rests on technological advantage and the absence of prior constraints on operations against Lebanese towns and villages. One described daily casualty rates in the dozens and the destruction of civilian infrastructure as a form of pressure on the Lebanese government in Beirut.

The United States has pushed for the ridge to be handed to the Lebanese army, but Hezbollah has rejected the proposal, fearing it would allow Israel to claim further territory. Releases of Lebanese detainees held by Israel formed part of separate confidence-building measures tied to the same talks. Five men freed this week had been detained inside Lebanon in recent months; one described months of solitary confinement and psychological pressure before transfer to Israeli prisons.

Coverage of these developments shows clear differences in emphasis. Haaretz foregrounds the immediate trigger of the drone attempt and the military’s right to respond inside the buffer zone. Al Jazeera and Arab News place more weight on whether the claimed control actually alters the military balance or simply sustains pressure ahead of Israeli elections scheduled for later this year. The two wire accounts carried by Japan Today and Aktuality report the clearance as a completed Israeli mission while recording both the absence of independent verification and Hezbollah’s earlier statements that downplayed the ridge’s decisive value. None of the pieces supplies evidence that Hezbollah has abandoned the area or accepted a handover.

The absence of any Hezbollah rebuttal stands out across the reporting. Several accounts flag this silence as potentially indicating restraint ordered from Tehran rather than acceptance of defeat. Israeli statements tie continued presence in the security zone to the disarmament of Hezbollah throughout Lebanon and the removal of threats to northern Israeli residents. Netanyahu faces elections in which his standing depends in part on demonstrating progress against the group.